Gothic fiction. (Genre/Form Term)

Cuddon, J. A dictionary of literary terms and literary theory, 1998 (Gothic novel/fiction: A type of romance; most Gothic novels are tales of mystery and horror, intended to chill the spine and curdle the blood. They contain a strong element of the supernatural and have all or most of the now familiar topography, sites, props, presences and happenings: wild and desolate landscapes, dark forests, ruined abbeys, feudal halls and medieval castles with dungeons, secret passages, winding stairways, oubliettes, sliding panels and torture chambers; monstrous apparitions and curses)

LCSH, Oct. 20, 2014 (Gothic fiction (Literary genre). UF Gothic horror tales (Literary genre); Romances, Gothic (Literary genre))

Fiction that depicts gloomy and antiquated settings, characters that are haunted by secrets and unresolved conflicts, psychological and physical terror, and elements of the supernatural.